


Show Your Love Somewhat Different

by AssassinMina



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Some animal love, Star Wars Animals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-12 10:54:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29508618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AssassinMina/pseuds/AssassinMina
Summary: Valentine’s Day in space is all the same for everyone but a group of Clones. But love can be shown in different ways, sometimes even through someone else.
Kudos: 6
Collections: Star Wars Valentine's Exchange 2021





	Show Your Love Somewhat Different

**Author's Note:**

> For @skippyhopperwisdom on tumblr for the Star Wars Valentine's Exchange!

_Different. Defect. Mutations. Bad Batch._

In a galaxy filled with various forms of life it seemed the artificially created beating of a heart does not belong to them. To anyone. No life form with value, worthy of respect or decent treatment. It started with the words used to describe them and ended with the way their lives were used to serve and protect and die in the name of the Republic. The perfect army.  
But even among thousands of men wearing the same face they did not belong. Clone Force 99, the Bad Batch. The clones with desirable mutations; even their natural difference from the others was valued by their usefulness.

Some days it was harder to keep these thoughts at bay, this day was one of these. And some may even doubt he had thoughts besides explosives and destruction at all.  
Wrecker was many things; brash, loud, a friend of destroying Separatists’ units and droids, upfront. He was not a man of words or softness, he was part of Clone Force 99, the ones for the unsolvable jobs, the most dangerous ones.

“Wrecker seems out of it today”, Hunter murmured almost to himself as he strode into the cafeteria-like place on their few days break from the last job, “taking out that droid factory got him harder than I thought.”  
  
“Or maybe it’s _the day_.” Hunter turned around to see Tech sitting at one of the tables, tinkering on one of his new devices the troop leader didn’t bother to ask about yet. With a frown he made his way over to his comrade, head tilted in confusion while he tried to comprehend what could he could have missed. Tech looked up to his commander, eyes comically large from his glasses. “You know, _the day,_ the one where all the lovey-dovey couples spent their time staring at each other smiling, where everyone in the Galaxy spends time with their dear ones, their lovers, their best friends. And even the Regs have each other, they’re not alone. They go to bars together, celebrate a victory, find company in each other and their friends … But us”, with a sigh Tech scratched his head, “we only have each other. We’re left out from the rest and we’re left to deal with everything ourselves. Sometimes things get to us, Wrecker is no different.”

“So, you think we should … go and cheer him up or something?” Emotional work was not something they learned on Kamino and as much as they respected and loved each other as brothers, it wasn’t always enough. Hunter knew and understood, he was no different. But how to cheer up Wrecker without blowing something up was a difficult task. With a slow spreading smirk the clone left the cafeteria, leaving Tech to work on his project in silence.

In the evening Wrecker still sat in his quarters, brooding over the events of the days prior. Close calls, as usual, painted a picture he knew all too well. Now he needed rest, lost of rest and maybe, for a change, a few hours of peaceful sleep. Wishes beyond hope, Wrecker knew that much. Sleep never came peaceful or easy, it was their curse in a life designed to fight.

Only a knock on the door ripped him from his thoughts. Clearing his throat the tall man answered and invited his brother in.   
“Heard you had a rough one”, Hunter said into the thick silence of the room, slowly approaching his comrade. He was answered with a barking laugh. “Ha! Tell these droids about having a rough one!”   
But Hunter saw through the cheer. The dark circles under Wrecker’s eyes, the lines on his forehead and around his mouth deeper than before. He was tired, exhausted and thinking far too much about things none of them could change. Shaking his head a little Hunter carefully placed a box in front of Wrecker and made his way back out without uttering another word.

Curious Wrecker crouched down in front of the transport box to peek inside and almost gasped when _something_ hesitantly looked at him, creeping out of the shadow to take a better look of its surroundings. “Oooh.” Slowly, and with caution no one would expect when seeing him, Wrecker opened the box and took the little, furry thing out. Its purple fur was soft between his fingers, large ears dropped, nose moving fast. “Hello, you little guy.” As careful as possible Wrecker sat back and placed the Ash-Rabbit onto his lap where the little thing slowly got comfortable while having its fur stroked by the clone’s large hands.   
With every stroke through the soft fur Wrecker’s mind slowed, the thoughts turned to dust and left him with a feeling of peace and calmness he rarely feels. Cuddled up like this the large, brash trooper of the Bad Batch and his purple, little Ash-Rabbit spent the night in, finally, peaceful sleep on a very different, very special Valentine’s Day.


End file.
